Qualcomm’s New Fast Charging Tech Is Android Only, 2x as Fast as Apple’s

Qualcomm today announced Quick Charge 3+, reports Neowin. Quick Charge 3+ is Qualcomm’s proprietary wired charging technology. It brings fast charging to devices that are powered by select Snapdragon processors.

Quick Charge 3+ is all about affordability and is designed to deliver a cost-effective, fast-charging solution to Qualcomm-powered handsets.

It would enable smartphone manufacturers to develop low-cost peripherals and chargers that they could bundle into smartphone packages or offer alongside new and existing phones.

Rapid Charging

The new Quick Charge 3+ standard matches the speed of the company’s flagship Quick Charge 4+.

Both standards promise to charge a phone from 0% to 50% in just 15 minutes which is faster than Apple’s fast charging technology which takes twice as long to get 50%.

According to Qualcomm, Quick Charge 3+ is 35% faster and much cooler than Qualcomm’s previous wired charging standards. It also supports a wide range of USB Type-A to USB Type-C adapters which tend to be less expensive than USB-C only cables.

Backward Compatibility

Have an older phone but are eyeing a Quick Charge 3+ charger? Then buy away as Qualcomm’s Quick Charge 3+ is backward compatible. You can purchase a Quick Charge 3+ charger for your older phone and be reasonably sure it’ll work with the new phone you plan to purchase later this year.

Even though Quick Charge 3+ will work with previous Quick Charge versions, these older devices will charge at the maximum speed of the older technology.

Android Only

It’s not surprising that Qualcomm’s quick charging technology works only with Qualcomm’s processors.

The new Quick Charge 3+ now supports the Qualcomm Snapdragon 765 and Snapdragon 765G SoCs out of the gate but will support new Snapdragon processors in the future.

The first device to take advantage of this wireless charging technology is the Xiaomi Mi 10 Lite Zoom, also known as the Xiaomi Mi 10 Youth Edition in China.

Apple’s Fast Charging

Apple’s iPhone lineup, including the new iPhone SE, supports fast charging with the company’s 18W power adapter. Apple’s fast-charging devices can use this adapter to go from 0% to 50% battery capacity in 30 minutes.

Unfortunately, Apple chose to ship the iPhone SE with a slower 5W adapter and not the fast-charging model. Owners have to shell out extra money to purchase this optional accessory.

Apple’s iPhones also can use wireless charging, but the company currently does not sell a wireless charging stand or mat.

Apple is rumored to be working on a new version of its previously announced AirPower charging mat. The wireless charging system was announced and then quietly canceled several months later.

Apple didn’t provide details on why the product was canceled, but rumors suggest the charger had many problems with overheating and even combustion.